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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Oct 27, 2022 19:49:17 GMT -5
Astrid's adventures in Sol City have certainly been interesting. The whole reason she ever came here was because of the Black Harvest Ball. That was a grand time, and she met a lot of new people. In fact, she's already gone on another adventure since the ball. The knightly man Edward encouraged her to join a special Fighter's Guild. That sounds like a big honor, so she must be a pretty good fighter. But this piece of paper just says to put on a spectacle! How is she supposed to do that? What does that even mean?
She sits on the edge of a fountain in the Market District considering her options. She's heard about an arena. That seems like the right kind of place to find a fight with someone. There would be good opponents there. First though, she thinks she needs a snack to keep her energy up. Looking around the market for the ideal meat stand, she spots one and heads over to get herself a meal. Turns out, there's a familiar turbanded man there. The one who dared her to steal someone's costume at the ball! What was his name again? Oh, right!
"Mister Vikram, hi!" she says cheerily as she walks over and orders up enough food to feed at least three adults. The meat stand man seems concerned, glances past her looking for who she's ordering for, then decides not to ask questions and prepares the order.
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Post by Vikram on Oct 27, 2022 21:36:33 GMT -5
Halfway through a bite into a delicious lamb kebab he hears the upbeat voice of someone vaguely familiar. Turning around quicky Vikram found the source, about a foot below his eyes. It was the short blonde person he had dared to steal a costume right? Hard to keep track, a bit of a buzz still rolling through him. The names of that night scrolled though his minds eye as he searched for hers, impolite to have your name remembered and not return in kind. One of the moon elves mentioned it once during the game...what was iiittt.... "Astro! What a coincidence and a pleasure to be seeing you once more. I pray there lay no hard feelings from the game! Please, allow me to cover this meal for you." He slid the Solars across the counter to the meat man. The vendors hand taps the bill and motions his hand for more money. Astonishing, the economy is in shambles just like that halfling had said at the party. A messy kebab filled smile crossed Vikrams face as he slid over several more Solars to cover the tab.
"Your eyes must be bigger than your stomach" He said wiping lamb sauce from his facial hair. "Saving some for later are we?"The market square was unusually packed today, some local event luring the upper class out and enticing vendors to stay open just a bit later. Fine dishware salesmen peddling their Fine Cresent. A cabbage carrier courting commoners. Even a juggler juggling joyously juxtaposed by a mime meandering menacingly through the market. streamers and banners strung up around the area provided quite the nice atmosphere.
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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Oct 27, 2022 22:44:29 GMT -5
She looks a bit puzzled at the mispronunciation of her name but shakes it off as if she simply misheard the turbaned man. "Oh, there's no hard feelin's," she says in the midst of pulling her coinpurse out. "Everyone was havin' a good laugh after all! And no one got seriously injured." Whilst she counts her coins, Vikram offers to cover her meal. "Oh, ya don't hafta, but I appreciate it! S'pose I'll never turn down a meal fer free!"
There's a bit of an awkward silence as Vikram must hand over yet more coins. She tries to offer up some of her own. "Erm, no, me eye ain't bigger than me stomach," she says, trying to offer him at least some repayment. "It's just a bit of a snack fer me." Most of her money goes to cover her food costs. It's amazing she managed to scrounge up the coin to construct the elaborate metal costume for the ball. Regardless of if Vikram takes her offering, she scoops up the meat from the vendor and starts munching on it. When she finishes a skewer, she habitually offers the skewer up to an invisible person on her right, the place where her ooze knight friend commonly walks. She nearly drops the skewer before realizing they're not present. Instead, her BlixtbotTM companion Charles mechanically plucks the empty skewer from her fingers, having followed her over from the fountain. "Ah, right," she murmurs, missing her friend.
It takes her little time to consume the multple meat skewers and handing the empty skewers to Charles who seems almost conditioned to take them at this point. "So," she starts through a mouthful. She forcibly swallows the half chewed bite and looks at the bearded seeker. "Yer well-traveled, ain't ya? Know a good place ta start a fight? I got this piece of paper here from a knight, and the only real instructions are ta prove yerself and make a spectacle of it. I feel like most fight's are a spectacle when you throw a bit o' razzle dazzle magic in there." One gauntleted hand does a jazz hand shake.
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Post by Vikram on Oct 28, 2022 3:34:46 GMT -5
The letter had a red seal and a ribbon adorning it, fluttering in the light breeze. "From a knight you say? May I take a look at it?" The young one wasn't wrong, the instructions were clear. Some knight out there was trying to get little girls into fights in the name of joining some guild. Vikram shrugged, kids got into scuffles all the time, though he didn't know about what kind of scuffles seemingly well-armed and armoured ones found. He handed the letter back to her, ruminating over the question.
"Well, for starters, you don't need magic to make a spectacular brawl. I would say the best ones go without the need to rely on lightning or fire to do the job. Two warriors, a battle of wits and muscle, victory going to the strong and the clever. Not to whom has the zappiest spell" Vikram imitated the jazz hands, bobbling his head to add undertones of ridicule towards magicians. Some meat fell out of his kebab as he did so, quickly downing the rest as he recovered.
"As for location..." Pondering for a moment, as though trying to decide. "I would say the most spectacular brawls happen not in the arenas, but wherever they need to be fought. I've seen several quite entertaining scuffles in the markets of Zeinav over a sour deal, or in the docks with squabbling sailors defending their ladies' honours."
Looking wistfully into nothingness, a look of longing found his face. In his youth it would have been far too easy to find himself caught up in a brawl.
"I dare say it has been far too long since I've had a proper tussle."
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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Oct 28, 2022 17:58:40 GMT -5
Astrid considers offering one of her skewers to Vikram when he loses a bit of meat - he did pay for them after all. But she's also hungry, so she finishes them off and hands the wooden sticks to Charles. She looks around at their surroundings. A scuffle in a market? Entertaining ones? That sounds like exactly what this fancy piece of paper wants! And he's not had a good fight in a while? Astrid puts up a good fight. She's fought all kinds of bandits and cultists and monsters! He's a tubby guy, he can't be too difficult! Oh, but she shouldn't forget the very regular looking wizard who was insanely powerful at Sky magic. Right, don't judge a book by its cover, just like you don't want to be judged for being a small girl.
Her voice comes with the first hint of hesitation Vikram's probably heard from her. "I... don't s'pose you'd like ta tussle with me?" she sheepishly asks. Then it dawns on her. They're in a market full of people. "Uh...Is this really the best arena fer fightin' though?" She supposes it could be a good arena, but won't that get them in trouble? She can't decide if she cares either way. Astrid has had her snack and is now rarin' for whatever will get her into this fancy fighter's guild!
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Post by Vikram on Oct 30, 2022 6:35:14 GMT -5
Vikrams eyebrow raised significantly. He was still on probation in Sol City for trespassing, but that was in the garden so he should be fine here. A tussle certainly would be just the thing to get his blood pumping again.
"Sounds like a grand idea! How about a few ground rules then. Absolutely no touching of the hair, or face. Thats it."
Vikram saw himself as a mentor, or a teacher of sorts. So, if kids wanted to learn, they would learn today. Drawing his silk wrapped scimitar of gold and steel slowly from its place on his back, he gripped the silk. With the flair of a showman he ripped the wrapping off and tossed it several armlengths into the air. Its fluttering a soft backdrop for his swords grand reveal. Its silvery polish shone brightly in the sun, its golden hilt glowing as several eyes from the crowd turned to see what was going on.
"Hey that guys robbing that kid with a robot!""Well, technically he is robbing that kid with a scimitar.""Who cares, call the guard!" "Worry not citizens, this will be quick!"The silk sword sheath fluttered slowly to the ground, Vikrams eyes met Astros, A stern and hard expression forming on his face. The scimitar met the blond ones eye level. "Like I said young one, the best arenas for fighting are the ones where fights must be fought. We choose not the venue of our eventual demise, but we do choose to fight."
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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Oct 31, 2022 10:43:26 GMT -5
Astrid watches Vikram whip out his scimitar and get into a ready stance. Part of her didn't expect him to say yes and just go for it. She likes it! Shooing Charles the nannybot away, she whips out her battle hammer, the cord it's on swings wildly. She's ready for this. Test the water before trying anything new she's learned. Hearing the citizens bicker about her being robbed, she readies herself.
"He ain't robbin' me," she calls back. "Just a bit of a scuffle." A grin spreads across the girl's face. If this traveler got invited to the ball, he must have a name for himself from his own prowess. She's ready for it. Her feet shuffle then she rushes forward, her greaves clanking loudly with each step. He's a friendly face, so she's not looking to cause any serious injury. Test the waters, test the waters. A little bonk in the thigh. Don't kneecap the man yet! So instead she swings her hammer to bash him in the thigh, carefully avoiding the scimitar best she can.
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Post by Vikram on Nov 1, 2022 2:02:48 GMT -5
The thwack came in from the low left, likely a move for the legs early on. Shifting his entire bodyweight onto his left foot, he began leaning. Far enough that he almost certainly would have just fallen over, but as the hammer came within striking distance he pushed off with significant force. A side flip, timed just well enough to jump over the hammer. The folds of silken cloth and chains of silver and steel like a river flowing through the air. Vikram caught a glimpse of the attack sweeping underneath him, the muscles in Astros arm rippling with restrained might. The Sukhbir couldn't believe it, this girl was holding back on him.
With a landing made slightly less graceful by a slight stumble after the roll recovery, Vikram straightened himself and levelled the sword again at the young half-dwarf.
"Dont think you can impress your knight friend with half efforts, holding back will get you hurt in the long run!" With a wide smile now adorning his visage, he made a side jump to stick one foot onto the counter of the meat stand. Using the counter as leverage, he jumped and spun a single rotation in the air, The scimitar following in a sharp circle. She had armour, right, shed be fine. At the crux of the rotation the sword lashed out, using the momentum of the spin and the jump to add force to the blow.
"Spectacular!"
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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Nov 2, 2022 19:27:21 GMT -5
It certainly comes as a surprise to Astrid when the heavier set man leaps into the air with general ease. She finds herself to be a much more grounded person, especially with her low center of gravity. The way he avoids her hammer, the grin on his face. The man is having a good time! And he thinks she's holding back? "Just had ta test the waters a bi-"
Before she knows it, his sword comes spinning down upon her, and she barely manages to block it with her battle hammer. A bigger grin spreads across her face as his weight bears down on her. He's got more technique and style than her, but she's only been at this a few months at best. She holds her free hand out towards the fountain. There's a slight clatter of metal against stone, and within no time at all, a full-sized war hammer flies into Astrid's hand. Electricity sparks off the head of the hammer as soon as it reaches her hand, and with no effort at all, she swings the hammer up at Vikram in some attempt to knock him off of her and create enough space for her to get up on her feet and face him head on. "Get offa me!" she laughs.
In the background, Charles the nannybot rushes to find cover. His recommendations for his mistress to halt the behavior have fallen on deaf ears.
Arcane Soul One with the Blade Always There
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Post by Vikram on Nov 4, 2022 14:28:37 GMT -5
The muscle fibres throughout his leg tightened immediately upon contact with the hammer. Electricity coursed through Vikrams body and exploded with a boom into the air opposite the impact. Midair and without a ground to divert the current, Vikram took the hit at full voltage and rocketed into the nearby meat stall. Broken planks and wooden splinters crashed into the street as the stall collapsed around the silken warrior. The vendor rose first, shaking off debris and shouting at Vikram about his ruined stall. Attempting to rise from the rubble, He noticed that his left leg was still paralyzed and tense from the shock. The old man smoked with residual heat, the voltage from the weapon making his entire beard stand out and on end. He licked his fingers and extinguished a small flame singeing his moustache. Pulling himself up with the assistance of a broken plank Vikram apologized profusely to the vendor. "I promise you this, it won't happen twice my good man."Turning his attention back to the young Hammerchild he loudly exclaims "Thats what I'm talking about! The true measure of a warrior! Though i may argue this constitutes an affectation of my hair." His smile indicated his lack of seriousness about that last part, though he did begin to move back towards the fight. His makeshift crutch fell to the ground as Vikram allowed himself to collapse forward. Whilst falling, a slight brush of a trinket imbued his body, elongating and melding into his core. Hitting the ground the Snake form continued elongating before reaching an impressive length. Vikramaconda slithered forth, the reliance on paralyzed legs managed. The moustachioed snake attempting to swirl around its opponent, waiting for an opening to strike.
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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Nov 5, 2022 0:46:36 GMT -5
The turban man seems to be full of surprises. First he was light on his feet, then she sent him flying right into the meat cart! "Shoot!" she gasps, reeling at the damage. "That was an accident, I promise!" The girl is finding more and more that she seems to be a walking magnet for property damages. This seems to be no exception.
"Mister Vikram, maybe this isn't the best place ta be-"
She stops short, because the traveler is not deterred by the property damage in the least. Perhaps this will make a good story for him? Still, she feels awful about the meat stand. She thinks she'll offer to fix it later. Offering an apologetic look to the meat man, Astrid turns her gaze back to Vikram only to find Vikram is no longer standing there. Instead there's a snake in his midst. A glorious, bearded snake. What the hell is she looking at?
Then the snake rushes forward, and she puts the pieces together. "Ah!" she yelps, jumping back onto the fountain's retaining wall and looking at the reptile. This is weird, but she's seen something similar. Blue Raspberry changes into animals, so Mister Vikram must have similar magic! How does this change things? What happens if she smashes him? Does she want to find out? He said don't hold back.
Trying to avoid the living rope, she leaps off the fountain, battle hammer in her left hand, war hammer in her right hand, both poised overhead to slam down on the ground. She hesitates to hit the snake. Her hammers hit the ground, sparking with electricity, kicking up a cloud of dust. Did she hit the snake? She almost hopes she didn't. Splattered guts don't sound great right now.
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Post by Vikram on Nov 6, 2022 2:02:37 GMT -5
His snake senses were alien and disorienting at first, but Vikram saw Astro leap from the fountain. Though what happened after that he was unsure. Now airborne, his body coiled in a loose tangle launched into the air. He swirled back into his human form, still tumbling through the air with a small plume of dust trailing behind him. The slate slab below him shattered and threw the anaconda airborne. Was she still holding back? it was getting hard to tell, if that hit connected it certainly would have been the end of Vikrams snakey life. The current issue however was returning to the ground. Looking quickly around towards the supposed landing area a building covered in various canopies and carpets seemed a comfortable location to aim for. Vikram braced with his scimitar for impact with the building, both hands held tight. He crashed into the side of the building, blade slashing straight through a canopy and catching on the wooden facade. A large dusty gash cut straight through the walls and earth of the building as the hefty warrior slowed his fall down the side of the shop, rubble falling around and scattering the crowd of shoppers below. Landing with a crash, followed by at least three canopies fluttering down around him.
"I dare say Astro, were well on our way to an exquisite showing!" He tugged his scimitar out of the wall of the store, wiping the dirt and dust with his scabbard before waggling his eyebrows at his opponent in a cheeky Zeinavan taunt. Winning was unimportant, it was the thrill of conflict that was its own reward. He crouched low, assuming a lean and fast Dingo form, and began charging. Closing the distance, he leapt up, returned to human form midair, and swung his sword horizontally.
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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Nov 6, 2022 23:02:23 GMT -5
Okay, now he's gotten her name wrong a couple of times, so it wasn't just her mishearing him. Astrid watches Vikram fly through the air, crash through the shops and canopies, and cringes at the damage. Not at all intentional. She's gonna owe these folks a lot of solars, isn't she? That is, if the guards don't snag her first.
"Mister Vikram, me name's Astrid, not Astro!" she shouts. "I don't even know what an Astro is!"
He shapeshifts into a dog and charges her, then leaps into the air, and she barely has a moment to figure out what the heck to do in this situation. Gripping her war hammer, a bit of blue electricity swirls in Astrid's eyes, and her body becomes wreathed in electricity. She brings her gauntlets up to absorb the hit from Vikram's sword, and the lightning courses through his sword from her body and shocks his hand. A numbness runs up his arm, so Astrid takes advantage of his numb limb and lines up another shot with both her hammers to hit him dead center.
Gauntlets (1 hit reduction) Lightning Armor [post 1/3]
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Post by Vikram on Nov 8, 2022 10:16:13 GMT -5
Astrid made a lot more sense he thought, she didn't seem to be an astrologer's apprentice now that she mentioned it. It was the last thought that went through Vikrams mind before the muscles in his sword arm heavily contracted from the electrical current. This power was unlike anything he had felt before, as though the energy within the hammers commanded his body to act against his will. The second he spent considering it was a second Astrid spent collecting her strength and sending both weapons dead center to his chest. He was an experienced swordsman, to deflect a move this brazen was not so hard. He attempted to raise his sword in the instant the hammers were incoming only to find it did not move. Betrayed by his own body.
The impact was staggering, throwing the old man across the market into a leafy green grocer's cart. It shattered into a million splinters on impact. Vikram could hear the sounds of anger from the merchant but could not piece together the words into understandable language. The pain in his chest was sharp, tight. His attempts to inhale found little purchase, his ability to inhale a full breath stolen from him.
Vikram lay in the rubble, huffing for air. That settles it, she wasn't holding back. The sound of blood rushing through his ears roared, the pace faster than normal. Finally, a proper tussle. Just like the good old days. A crack lay in the bauble protecting his chest, the source of his shapeshifting powers. Regrettable, another visit to the jeweler.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Shapeshifter armour (1 hit reduction)
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Post by Lady Astrid Stormstone on Nov 8, 2022 23:31:09 GMT -5
With some distance between herself and Vikram again, Astrid lets out a heavy breath. Twice she's sent the man flying and destroying something. Or maybe thrice? She's going to be broke after this to pay for all the damages... The lightning continues to spark off her armor and persists from her warhammer.
"How ya holdin' up, Mister Vikram?" she calls out to him. Her face twists into an awkward, apologetic look towards the cabbage man. At this point someone's called the guards. That's going to be fun when they arrive. They should end this quickly. "I could probably take a few more smacks from ya at this point. If ya really wanna continue, maybe we should go away from all the people??" She's supposed to be a hero adventurer making her name by becoming a great armorsmith, not by becoming a menace to society. Maybe the best option here is to knock out the turbaned man? That seems reasonable honestly.
So she takes a breath and grips both hammers in either hand. Lightning sparks in her eyes, and she rushes at inhuman speed across the market to close the gap between herself and Vikram. Her battle hammer should be enough to do it, no need to cause permanent damage. She makes an attempt to strike at him with the small hammer in her left hand (which does not have electricity sparking off of it currently) to finish things off. Though she hesitates briefly seeing the huge crack in Vikram's armor before trying to give him a bonk in the head. She's absolutely going to fix that for him later.
Lightning Armor [post 2/3] Bullet Dash
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